Meanwhile…

A few weeks ago I made the decision not to attend London Fashion Week for the AW13 season. In the past my attendance has varied from popping up to see just the one show to spending a few days away from home.

The longest I stayed away was three nights and packed as much into four days as I could, although I use the term “packed” somewhat lightly. Editors, buyers and the uber bloggers really do pack in as much as possible – you can spot them running from show to show, usually hoping that the next one will be starting late so they can be on time. Extreme pressure I would imagine.

My “packing in” consists of maybe two or three shows a day if I’ve gotten lucky on the ticket application front, planned meet ups with lovely blog friends, perhaps a complimentary blow dry at Somerset House and various meetings and events arranged to coincide with me being in London. And lots of coffee stops…and a fair amount of champagne.

No pressure there… thoroughly enjoyable in fact. The glamour factor keeps me ticking over for weeks afterwards and it’s an experience that I still can’t believe I’m lucky enough to have. The up front organisation is the stressful part for me. Am I going to get enough tickets to warrant what I’m paying out in train fare, hotels and expenses? Enough to warrant me asking Mr OLS to take some time off work to be with Junior Child? Will there be enough content, Twitter activity and Instagram overload to justify my being away from home for four days?

Four days isn’t a lot to some and to others it’s way too long. This season I really didn’t want to be away for that long and fancied a break from the organisation overload. I’m lucky enough to be able to choose and right now I choose to be here at home with my family. I found myself asking will readers feel they’re missing out on my coverage if I don’t go?

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Comments

Of course we are going to miss your coverage. But I think all of your readers understand your decision that you wan to be with your family right now. I can completely relate. I haven’t been going for a long time – despite living in London. I just always seem to have small people to look after who need me more than any fashion circus could need me. Ahhhhh, it’s SO nice to get older
Much love, Dxx

Ah I will miss your blogs from LFW although completely understand your reasons for not going, the stress of organisation involved in attending!!! Anything that takes ages to put together is less enjoyable as a result ……
I am looking forward to reading your blogs on collections from LFW though!
I’m sure you will be still be there via your computer sipping a latte…. and still able to pick JC up from school PERFECT X

Sounds like a well thought out, priority driven decision. I don’t read LFW blog posts anyway. Quite like to see the street style pics but apart from that, my life is too busy to think about AW13 yet. Enjoy your mid-term at home with family and friends. Avril x

I am sure you will be missed but there will always be another LFW. The important thing is to keep that perspective and integrity. If it’s not right for your family then you definitely shouldn’t go, and I think you will be well respected for having principles. I will miss your coverage and I hope you will share some of your favourite street style pics with us. At the end of the day you don’t have to be at LFW to write about it. xx

Know the feeling. I’ve sat out a few LFW and mens now. It’s not always financially viable and is quite a lot of travelling. I also find it difficult with how last minute some of the ticket allocations are! Shall miss your coverage as always but I understand (all too well) that we all have priorities xx

Like you I decided not go. To be honest I think the people who read my blog won’t be interested in what’s showing this week until it’s hitting the stores in the autumn. For me it would be an indulgence not a business decision. The coverage is so good now you don’t really need to be there to keep in the know. Instead I spend the time creating a seasonal update for my readers at the beginning of each season. I prefer to be home with my family too – I think you’ve made the right decision for you and your family. You can’t replace the time when your children are young and you seem to be finding a great balance. You can still enjoy the champagne!

Hi sweet, I’ve been thinking about the question you posed since yesterday as I think it’s an important one. I observe the fashion week attendance with interest and follow lots of editors and bloggers on twitter who write about it and are in the thick of it. I’ve always enjoyed your commentary in the past on fashion week but mainly because it lacked all of the ‘look at me’ pretension that I see from so many others. Being invited to write about anything is a gift, let alone to slip into the glamour of real fashion and celebrity.

So…if you miss a year, no biggie. Your enthusiasm will shine through no matter and to be honest I see so much duplication in what is covered by bloggers, it seems a rush for who will post first and who will publish first but in reality much of the summaries are the same. I wouldn’t (and I don’t think you are) beating yourself up about not going as frankly I think you can have a valid voice without being in the front row. I must admit I get a bit weary of the whole ‘I’m here live’ anchor-man style from some anyway. I say: be different!!! The thing that has always fascinated me is what the celebs wear, who is ithe front row, how the brands are embracing social media – Burberry are awesome at this for example.

So, there you go, my thoughts!!

Have a chilled week glued to your computer rather than being away from your lovely family.

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[…] that sometimes, something’s got to give if you want to have a healthy work-life-balance. She gave London Fashion Week a miss this season (and all the glamour, free champagne and blow dries that come with it) to instead spend […]